Really
by Goddess Jeshi
Summary: The world has been saved, and so it's time for Mizuho to move! However, Sheena is about to find all the true challenges of being a chief... And it's a really bad time to be learning, since the clan's lives are what’s at risk!
1. Prologue: Cynicism

_Tales of Symphonia (world, characters, etc.) ® Namco_

_Plot, content, and writings ® Goddess Jeshi of this site…_

_If you read this, you are entitled to review it. Meaning, I write it. You read it. Therefore, you should also review it! Else wise, it's not fair!_

**Prologue: Cynicism**

The papers she held were yellow with age and smeared with dirt. Whether the dirt was from it's recent high usage or the many years it had no doubt been stored didn't matter. The dirt didn't even matter, because the precious text was still visible. Visible, but outdated.

"Chief…" A man sighed from behind. She hadn't heard his footsteps. He had probably been elected from the townspeople to bring her, the chief, their pressings. He didn't sound enthusiastic about it, though. Or maybe he was just glum because of the news, not having to deliver it… The man's hair, a light shade of chestnut, was pinned to the back of his head, letting the long strands fall up from above, like a fountain. He wore a common kimono: the coloring was painted on with many simple but beautiful designs, themed with trees. The colors stood out in the environment, making him look odd. Every human looked odd; all color did here.

The chief nodded. Her black hair, also toppling over her head's back, shifted. The strands left out, to the sides of her face, covered her eyes when she bobbed in agreement. Maybe she did that on purpose. "I know." She muttered.

The man looked very uncomfortable, shrugging nervously and glancing around at the dead lands. He shivered once or twice, trying to restrain himself. Finally, the man spoke… Or rather, cried out: "Sheena!" It was informal to call the chief by her first name, but she didn't reprimand him. "What are we going to do?!" The man began to panic. His brown eyes grew wide, head titled down so they could plead upwards to the chief's back. He unconsciously lowered himself, and his body began to shake with every breath. "Look! iLook/i! For god's sake look da-"

"I know!" The chief cut him off with a fearsome shout. The abrupt reply had come out much louder and angrier than she had intended. Sheena wasn't angry, just equally scared. "What do you think I've been doing?! Standing here with my eyes closed?!" Her body shook. It caused her purple bow to bounce. There was no pervious wind, so when the large ribbon suddenly gashed out and in, the ninja's shivering became crystal clear.

The pause was quick, as Sheena continued to shake, but more lightly now, and the man's breathing grew heavy, moreover he calmed down. "I'm sorry." He finally sighed. The man dipped down to try to show his respects, knowing that what he had just down was wrong.

"It's fine." The teenager heaved, feeling bad herself. The exchange had been quick, but that made it more mature, she figured. "We all have something to vent." Sheena turned her head half-way to facing the man behind here, smiling weakly. Then her eyes traced onward towards the dead land that stood all around them. It was the classic scene of death – black mist fogged out the ugly, hilled wasteland.

The man's gaze followed Sheena's onto the hopeless area. He sighed, shaking quietly with the breath's release, and then asked, "What are we going to do?" His voice was small, scared, and unsure.

Sheena turned her watch back on him. He was asking the question to a friendly fellow clan member, but also to his chief, for future directions. Sheena took in a curt breath, did one last glance at the dead land the documents had misled them to, and said, "Assemble the clan. I'll chart out our next location and we'll move on."

The man did turn around to follow her orders, but he mumbled faintly to himself. Sheena could still hear it. "iFor the fifth time..?/i" The ninjas had been traveling around for about three months now, looking for a new home. They had the town's records of suitable lands, kept for times when they need to relocate, but it was old and mostly outdated. Once, it led them to an area that already had a town on it… That was a mess. It was Sheena's job to find a home for her clan! It was her first large job as chief... And she had to do better.

"I can't keep dragging them around like this! What kind of leader am I..?!"


	2. Chapter One: Daunting Termination

Chapter One: Daunting Termination

"Mommy, I'm sleepy…" The mother squeezed the child's tiny hand harder. Their breaths showed up _too_ clearly in the morning's cold air. They wore multiple layers, consisting of things like scarves, boots, kimonos, and furry coats, and the covers were mostly drenched. The clan up brought icy morning dew with every step, damping their worn boots. Sometimes the raindrops flung up to awake their faces, probably due to the force of the clan's long strides.

"Don't worry love…" The mother lied. Her pale face was painted with frost and fear. "We'll be home soon. You can rest then." The women stumbled over a small rock shortly after; it revealed how her movements were blocky and uncertain. She caught herself before falling, but still surged very easily. Sheena's cold eyes moved to observe another target. Her clan… Was weakening… And she couldn't do anything about it! She was supposed to stop it!

Sheena felt very tempted to crash her heel onto the wet grass violently. The force, however, would only send dew drops up her leg and make her to shiver more. The ninja had refused to put on extra layers this morning, and now was rethinking the decision. Normally things were better traveling in the morning; the clan started moving early to avoid having to walk during the hot afternoons, if it every got that bad. They would usually just take breaks for the afternoons and travel on the colder hours of dusk and dawn. However, the climate seemed to be getting colder and colder as they traveled on. The land seemed to get worse… Things were seeming to get hopeless.

'_I shouldn't…_' Sheena thought to herself, '_Be thinking those things... It's __me__ who needs to be the strongest right now…_' She paused in her walking to take a few deep breaths, which ending up being a minute or two of soppy panting. The ninja repositioned her sacks, heaving them up higher on her back, and walked onward. Oh well. At least the labor of moving the clan's possessions was keeping her hot.

… Okay, it was keeping her back hot. Her feet, shins, hands, and face were still freezing. And what was hot was burning from the inside; her outside was frozen. The unbalance made things worse.

And worse.

And worse.

Things weren't extremely interesting, just hard work, and every day passed slowly. Though the clan was, mostly, in excellent physical condition and the ninjas could move quicker than most people. It did bring in the extra task of trying to stay hidden, though, being ninjas. They'd have to walk around several places. The longer routes weren't too bad, though… Right? Sheena was beginning to wonder.

The children complained again – they had to put in their whining every few hours. "Mommy, it's cold…" "Daddy, are we there yet?" "Can we take a break, please?" "Mom, can you carry my load..? Just for a bit? I'm tired!" The guardian would hush them quickly, sending worrying glances to the rest of the clan; hoping they hadn't been disturbed. They always apologized to Sheena, but she was never cross with them. The chief felt badly for them, actually.

Terrorized screams interrupted the children's moaning, however. And no one liked those sounds more. Most of the people glanced at Sheena for orders. The chief ninja was already dropping her bags, and excitement was pulsing through her. It wasn't child's play, though. There was something bad up ahead and she couldn't get juvenile…

"I'll go up ahead and see what's going on," Sheena began to bark out orders, taking a few leaps into the direction of the pained shouts, "Yukio, Sashin, Kaname, and Sachi," Sheena motioned to the more elite members of the clan, pointing at each one of them as she said their name, "You come with me. Everyone else… Take a break for awhile. It's almost afternoon, anyway." And not waiting for her selected to follow, Sheena began to take more fast, long jumps in the destined direction. She loved how the frost would leave her feet, and she'd soar for a moment; then Sheena's body would jerk back when her foot hit the ground, but soon she'd be leaping again…

The chief's selected ninjas soon where pacing themselves by her side. "What will we do, Chief?" They asked, eagerly.

"Just see what's going on. We'll probably help." Sheena answered. All of the warriors dipped down their heads in understanding, and then focused back on their jumps. It didn't take long for the small group to cross the field, and they quickly emerged into the scene of the crime.

A growl welcomed them. "It's dirtying the grass. Do you want to dirty the grass as well?" In the clearing stood a small man, wearing a townman's plain, brown and tan clothing. Expect in his hand he had a great, big sword. All of his hair was white, though he didn't seem that old.

"W-what's dirtying the grass..?" Sheena managed to gasp. Her elites were manning their face to keep cool, but Sheena's true expression showed, and she failed to act calm. She was afraid.

The man chuckled, looking at the ground. Soon after, however, he snarled again, "Their blood!" He roared, "Their fifthly blood!"

The gaze of the ninja's instantly saw the collapsed body of two beaten half-elves. One was a tiny girl, with a sweet cream dress and a clump of purple hair. The other was probably her father; his glasses were crushed right next to his face. The corpse also had on the plain clothing, and sliver hair. Both of them were splattered in blood. Their own blood.

Sheena spotted elvin ears on the deceased bodies, and stared up at the murder to find elvin ears on him as well. "You… You're a pure elf, and you killed these two, just because they're half-elves?! You killed a daughter and her father?!"

"Did you know them, Sheena?" Yukio's mature voice surprised Sheena, and her body shook once in shock. She looked over at him; as always. He kept his angry, hurt, or twisted expressions hidden, and only displayed the 'good' ones. Right now he looked extremely cold.

"No." Sheena sputtered, "But just look. He is an elf with a sword. The deceased ones are at least somewhat elvin. He said they had filthy blood; that it was dirtying the grass! And it's a small girl, killed while she was in a man's grasp." The murdered froze for a moment, and then nodded, approving her logic. Sheena spat out, "Sick."

"…_I call upon thee…"_

The man seem ashamed, though his face was hidden. He remained quiet and looked down at the red-stained blades of grass once green. Sheena was unsure what to do. Finally, she sighed, "We're still reporting you to the police for murder-"

"…_in the land of the dead to unleash thou fury of thunder…"_

"Chief!" Sachi gasped, the only other girl among the group, as a panicking realization occurred upon her, "He was spell-casting!"

"What-?!" Sheena gawked, jumping back, but it was too late.

"Indignation!" The man yelled out.

"It's a powerful thunder spell," Sheena briefly informed everyone, in case they did not know. She recalled Genis unleashing it's might on their enemies… But she never imaged it'd be used on her. It was a horrifying spell. "Run!" She then ordered. If they could make it out of the circle on time, then perhaps—

"Gaaaaah!" Sashin screamed helplessly. The area where he was standing was hit first. Everyone else soon followed.

……………………………

"Did you hear those screams?"

"It had to be-"

"Yes! They're in danger. Let's go!"

The rest of the clan poured into the bloody scene. Some women had stayed behind with the children, but most of the ninjas were there. The murderer laughed, twisted, though he himself seemed to be in doubt. "I'll take you all on at once!" He declared through mad chuckles. The man slashed his sword wildly and began to spell-cast once again.

……………………………

"All right, you're good." An older woman kindly proclaimed. She was smiling weakly. Her spirit had probably been weakened by the horrible mob of the wounded.

"I don't _feel_ like I'm good." Sashin muttered, popping up from the ninja's makeshift table: a tree trunk.

The older woman, whom was one of the many nurses helping out the clan, shook her head and sighed, "It just takes time to heal. I've done all I can."

Sashin glanced back at her, surprised that she replied, "Ah, no." He assured her, waving the comment away with his hand, "I… I mean, I didn't intend to offend you." The healer raised her eyebrows and nodded slowly. Sashin glanced around nervously. "Things aren't working." He finally mangled, "The whole clan got involved in that fight, and it was a bloody mess. I feel physically down," he glanced at his bandaged arms, "but mentally, I feel worse."

The woman nodded again, "I know – it is difficult." The healer didn't deliver much sympathy, however, "Now, I must heal the others." She raced him on. "I can do nothing for your spirit." Sashin bowed his head down maturely and quickly exited, back onto the damp fields of grass where the clan was resting.

"H-how do you feel?" Sheena asked Sashin, taking the last few steps towards him uncertainly. He hadn't noticed her coming; she had probably taken very light, careful, nervous steps. A true ninja. Sashin acknowledged her by glancing back, but it was with a dismissive appeal, briefly after looking back towards the depressing meadows. He didn't reply. Sheena shook her head, angling downwards as she did so. "Of course." She admitted, "That must be a difficult question right now. I'm sorry."

Sashin looked back at her. "Are you apologizing just for the question?"

Sheena bit her lip. This time it was her to look away. "No." She heaved, "For everything. I can't find us a home. I got everyone in danger. I'm making a mess of everything, and fixing none of it…"

Sashin shrugged. He shifted his gaze away as well. "It is not your burden alone. If it truly concerns the clan, they will push you in the right direction. If they have not rebelled against your actions yet, that means they approve of them, and that they trust you."

Sheena glimpsed over towards him with her eyes only. "They shouldn't." She mumbled, looking away again. Eye contact would make the conversation even more uncomfortable.

Sashin shrugged casually once again, "You can do great things." Sheena figured he was referring to the time she traveled and united the worlds.

"Only when I have others to carry me." She spat. Alone, she was worthless.

"You have this whole clan." Sashin argued calmly, "They will support you. They do trust in you. Now go and make their trust worthwhile." With that, Sashin walked off, leaving Sheena standing there alone.

Standing there alone, in the misty morning. Dew drops scattered across the clothing. Frost filling every breath. Behind her standing lines of bleeding wounded, before her standing the so-called healed. But they didn't look any better. Nothing was looking any better. Everything was getting worse.

And worse.

And worse.

And worse.

And…


End file.
